the blob Posted January 6, 2019 Share Posted January 6, 2019 I was think of buying a Dave Hoover page. He is affordable and I like his lines. So I looked him up to see what he is up to and he has been dead for 7 years, passing at age 56 or so. Then I looked up a bunch of others who were active in the 70s-90s and so many didn't make it to 70 it seems. Sure, you have your john romitas and Steve ditkos, but a lot of these guys don't live long. While there may be deadline stress and lousy (or no) health insurance, this isn't working in a coal mine or welding sky scrapers. Are my observations purely anecdotal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grebal Posted January 6, 2019 Share Posted January 6, 2019 Drummers like for the band Spinal Tap used to die from spontaneous combustion. Maybe this is something like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyNameIsLegion Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 sitting hunched over a drawing table for a living's not the healthiest for sure- and imagine how many have work related injuries- Carpal tunnel, arthritis, etc- eyesight issues. Mostly the sitting though- as they literally made no money unless they were drawing. Artboy99 and The Lions Den 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post kav Posted January 7, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 7, 2019 Rand Holmes a true genius only made it to 60. lizards2, The Lions Den, mysterymachine and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzMan Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Of those whom I followed who've died relatively young: Darwyn Cooke died at 53. Michael Turner died at 37. Dave Stevens dies at 52. The Lions Den, deadleg, JJ-4 and 1 other 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comicquant Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 It seems, based on my personal friends who are either artists or writers (creative in general), they are more likely to succumb to addiction, depression etc. This isn't something I state as fact, its just something I've noticed. The Lions Den, Turnando and JJ-4 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Aldred Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 (edited) Mike Parobeck, a diabetic, was only 30 when he died. A very sad loss of a great talent. Edited January 7, 2019 by Ken Aldred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzMan Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 8 minutes ago, MYNAMEISLEGION said: sitting hunched over a drawing table for a living's not the healthiest for sure- and imagine how many have work related injuries- Carpal tunnel, arthritis, etc- eyesight issues. Mostly the sitting though- as they literally made no money unless they were drawing. I'm not sure about that. Many, many artists active from the 50s, 60s and 70s have just recently passed: Steve Ditko (90), Marie Severin (89), Harlan Ellison (82), Russ Heath (91), Gene Colan (84) There's still a few still out there today that are from the olden days that are still with us: Sal Buscema, Jim Steranko, Jim Starlin, John Romita piper, The Lions Den and BlowUpTheMoon 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the blob Posted January 7, 2019 Author Share Posted January 7, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, JazzMan said: I'm not sure about that. Many, many artists active from the 50s, 60s and 70s have just recently passed: Steve Ditko (90), Marie Severin (89), Harlan Ellison (82), Russ Heath (91), Gene Colan (84) There's still a few still out there today that are from the olden days that are still with us: Sal Buscema, Jim Steranko, Jim Starlin, John Romita Harlan Ellison is a writer. But yes, some of the old timers did better. Starlin is only 69. If a man lives to 51 they actually have a life expectancy to 79. Sal buscema is old, big big john left us earlyish. A lot of guys who broke in in the 70s/80s have not done well in the lifespan department, it seems. Rich buckles, Dave cockrum, Allan kupferman, others. True, when I hit 64 and see how many contemporaries are dead I guess it won't seem odd. Edited January 7, 2019 by the blob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADAMANTIUM Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 2 minutes ago, the blob said: Harlan Ellison is a writer. But yes, some of the old timers did better. Sal buscema is old, big big john left us earlyish. A lot of guys who broke in in the 70s/80s have not done well in the lifespan department, it seems. Don Perlin is still alive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bird Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Set Fisher fell off a roof a very tragic death at a very young age Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercury Man Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Don't forget Allen Bellman and Joe Sinnott are still kicking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
batman_fan Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 1 hour ago, Ken Aldred said: Mike Parobeck, a diabetic, was only 30 when he died. A very sad loss of a great talent. He was quite amazing. His work on Batman the Animated series is still iconic. Norm Breyfogle passed at 58, another loss Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bird Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 When Parobeck died his art was fairly cheap and he was an "artist's artist". People have caught on since then. F For Fake 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MB1952 Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Angelo Torres still alive? Never heard any Convention appearances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the blob Posted January 7, 2019 Author Share Posted January 7, 2019 2 hours ago, Mercury Man said: Don't forget Allen Bellman and Joe Sinnott are still kicking. Joe sinnott says he was paid $46 a page back in 1956 (apparently cut to $21 after a downturn). $430 in 2019 dollars. He was paying $30 a month rent in Manhattan. A pretty good paycheck if he was doing 2 books a month. Maybe that helped keep him alive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCheli Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 15 hours ago, JazzMan said: Of those whom I followed who've died relatively young: Darwyn Cooke died at 53. Michael Turner died at 37. Dave Stevens dies at 52. All three died of cancer. I'm not sure that's an artist thing. Dave Hoover was a fit guy who just had a heart attack and died very unexpectedly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Pontoon Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Rich Buckler also died from cancer, and he was also a smoker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 13 hours ago, kat123 said: Angelo Torres still alive? Never heard any Convention appearances. Yes. Last EC artist. Met him 4 years ago at SDCC. He looked and sounded good. The Lions Den 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miraclemet Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 average male (since 95% of the creators we are talking about are male) life span in the US is just under 79 Sedentary lifestyles (either jobs at desks, or excessive time on couch/non-existent anaerobic activity) seems to only decrease lifespans on average by 2 years (Katzmarzyk and Lee, 2012) Smoking decreased livespans by 10 years. Lack of available health insurance throughout life also decreases life spans by 10 years on average (when compared to communites that have full access to healthcare). it adds up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...